tv Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries D-NY on Legislative Agenda Government... CSPAN March 11, 2025 8:07pm-8:34pm EDT
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anything. >> comcast support c-span as a public service along with these other television providers. giving you a pharmacy to democracy. >> house minority leader hakeem jeffries texas party's objectives the upcoming government funding deadline after his remarks the house passed the government funding measure which is now headed to the senate for consideration. hosted by punch bowl news in washington d.c. this is about 25 minutes. ♪ >> are right. hello everyone. the live taping of the punch podcast we are hakeem jeffries with us up on stage for the top conversation that new york democrat's been in congress since 2013t is now 12 leaders f the democrat party and in the hot seat today with a government
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funding conversation. >> us a little bit out of order news events have overtaken the questions will get to eventually. so this afternoon at three or 4:00 o'clock house republicans are putting acr a government funding bill on the floor through september 30. you guys are going to vote no you said we are a no for your leadership team is a no my reporting would indicate from talking to your members the vast majority are also no. why is this a bad bill for democrats to vote for? kirk'sot great to be with both f you. great to be with all of you. our view their ongoing bipartisan negotiations led by top democrat on the appropriation committee. who is work with the chair of the appropriations committee as well as the top senate appropriators.
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those discussions were progressing. and at the 11th hour president trump and mike johnson cut off theth negotiations. order tom cole to walk away from them and then introduced a partisan spending bill that undermines the health, safety and well-being of the american people. in critical ways i'll get to chop limes fl to protect social security, medicare medicaid which we know are on the chopping block. as recently confirmed yesterday by elon musk but we know they are the chopping block. and they want to cut up to if not beyond $880 billion for it medicaid connected to the budget. so the bill fails to protect social security, medicare and medicaid which we indicated versus the light in the sand but it goes beyond that dramatically cuts healthcare, nutritional assistance, children and
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familiesnu and veterans benefits including from veterans who are suffering from painful exposure to toxic substances, burn pits and agent orange. and so we are not just a no. we are a hard no across the democratic caucus. >> those conversations are ongoing. there already a publicly declared i will see where we land we get to the floor laid or on this afternoon to cook some ask him a question though get into the meat of this. you want a four-week cr. you want this to be kicked into the middle of aprilek roughly. your hope the appropriators you the speaker could come up with some sort of large-scale spending bill atp that point. >> isat the job of congress to
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reach a full year appropriations. that's good for the american people. that's good for our national security. this will be the first time the defense industry would bee subjected to a full-year continuing resolution is set forth by the built republicans want us to vote on. i fails to make the investments necessary so our view is pretty simplece. there is a four-week continuing resolution that is actually a clean bill. it does not reflect and enhance republican priorities. just not reflect enhanced democratic priorities. all it does is hold things where they are right now to allow for continued negotiations. to meet the needs of the american people. and byth the way, this should nt be that complicated. in may of 2023 as part of an
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agreement to avoid a catastrophic default on our nations debt, we reached agreement around the bipartisan fiscal responsibility act. which actually set top line spending numbers for fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year 2025 which we are in right now. those numbers have been set and agreed upon. that is the framework in which democrats and republicans were actually negotiating consistent with current law. donald trump and mike johnson pulled the plug on those negotiations. we are saying we should back at the negotiating table but do not shut down the government with a partisan republican spending bill. let's reach a meaningful agreement for the american
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people. >> it appears americans are going to pass this legislation on their own. pretty surprisingg it should hae been a time where we projected with democrats worst moment to stand together. it's been a cr passed by republicans into law since i've been covering congress anyway. what's the next moment of leverage? you pull peoplee together and going forward reconciliation you not in the game on that. where can democrat stand up and have an impact? except to continue to make it clear for the american people that we are standing on the economic well-being, the national security and their safety per that's over standing on the side of healthcare, standing on the side of medicaid, of social security, medicare and standing on the side of actually trying to do something about the economy. the critical and coren issue in november. all of my republican colleagues
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talks about we've got to lower the high cost ofy living. we agree. the cost of living is too high. we got to bring down housing prices. bring down grocery costs. bring down utility cost. bring down insurance cost bring down america's too expensive for working families, working class folks everyday americans middle-class americans. the economy is growing at the previous administration. record job growth record stock market record low unemployment connected to the last 50 years. all is being unraveled in real time less than 100 days. in terms of making life better
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this a debate what is a democratic party stand for ordering the post body which is really supposed obama era is there a thirty second pitch? there's got to be some version of it. is there a thirty second pitch who are now out of power and not control the senate and the presidency what is that pitch now? kirk's in my view in america when you work hard and play by the rules you should be able to live a comfortable life. i experience the american dream. that is not too much to ask in the wealthiest country inuc the history of the world y work har, play by the rules you should be
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able to live a comfortable life. an extrinsic drain. the reason they're so much anxiety, concern even anger amongst people all across the country ispe that for far too my folks in america that american dream is out of reach. the notion, there are core elements to it through the core elements to it. work hard, play by the rules, live a comfortable life, purchase a home, educate your children pretty have access to high quality and affordable healthcare. go on vacation every now and then. and one day be able to retire with grace and dignity. those are the elements of the american dream. for far too many people out of reach. as democrats we are committed to bringing that american dream to
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life. our heroes who came back from world war ii part of the greatest generation save the world from fascism. saved democracy and built the greatest middle-class in the history of the world. that is our risk right now. people are angry about it. i've got to turn it around. cooks to lay out your vision for the american dream, the future of electing donald trump. >> i think we are not moment of a pendulum consistently swinging. basically saying george h.w. bush for bill clinton. bill clinton to george w. bush. george w. bush to barack obama. barack obama to donald trump. donald trump to joe biden. joe biden back to donald trump. i believe it will swing again in
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2026. [laughter] will swing again in 2026 to the house the question has to be asked why very different visions for america so many everyday americans are in search this notion, generation after generation after generation is widely understood that your children and grandchildren were going to do better than you. that was a core part of the promise of what america represents. and for a lot of folks that contract has been broken. until the pendulum has been
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swinging back and forth. but we have to build to do is convince the american people that we are prepared with the fierce urgency to solve their core problems. which begins with building a stronger economy and making sure that we can, at this moment, lower the high cost of living for everyday americans are live paycheck to paycheck. cannot even think about getting ahead, can barely get by. that's a court probably has to be challenged and of course there are other things secure the border, keep communities safe. make sure we always keep the main thing, the main thing the health, the safety the economict well-being of the american people.ri that is a challenge that's in front of all of us as members of congress and whoever chooses to run for president after 2026 midterms. >> have a lot of ceos in town
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this week a ceos at the conference. ateo the event we are at right now. if you talk to corporate america delegate trumps agenda cutting taxes, slashing regulation, cutting government spending. they say it sounds pretty good toto me. i think you've seen more willingness from corporate america to align themselves with trump this time around. >> clearly you do not agree with all terms of use. i am wondering if you have a note of caution for corporate america about why they should be wary of trumps policies? >> received the economy being threatened in realen time, since generate 20th. we are barely at the halfway mark in the terms of the first 100 days. part of the challenge is there does not seem to be a clear
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strategy as it relates to the economy. and bring about the most prosperous society possible. all of this chaos has been unleashed on the american people. all of this chaos has been unleashed in terms of policy. there's increase in tears are gonna pull back because in canadaand mexico are fighting b. but them are going to decide to fight back and announce untruths social there are more tariffs. all the while the economy is being threatened and real time. as evidenced by the stock market. as evidenced by the declining consumer confidence. as evidenced by the likelihood that consumers are going to pull back in terms of spending and we are already seeing it in certain sectors of the economy, travel
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andno hospitality. this business friendly menstruation does not seem that way. a core element for american business success to me seems to be certainty the policy environment certainty in the business environment. and that is not exist right now. it's actually the exact opposite. >> you also get that reconciliation tax reform taxes were expiring under democratic control. >> the court priorities for us would be enhancing and expanding the child tax credit which was a significantt benefit to middle-class families, working families, and low income families. very few policy changes it
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exists or are available for us to be able to enhance the lives of that many americans. low income working-class families and middle-class families that is what the enhanced child tax credit did when it was included as part of the american rescue plan. it allowed people to have the ability to pay for bacon basic expenses like housing, education, child care to put food on the table clothing on theic backs of working-class families and middle-class families and of course low income families that will be a tough priority and we have made that clear. strengthening low income tax credit is one vehicle of its minimum bipartisan program since it was put into law in the mid- 80s. that is an important program that we can lean into it we've got to go beyond what's viewed as low income housing because we
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have moderate income folks and middle-class folks struggling. how can it be in america police officers, firefighters, teachers, nurses, construction workers struggling to afford a home and be able to afford to raise the family in a safe and decent environment. that cannot be america. in addition to the low income housingio tax credit we have toe creative about how we perform public/private partnerships to encourage developers to build more housing across t america bounce of the supply and demand problem that we have. vice president harris spoke about this former president obama,a, house democrats believe in it. we have a supply problem as it relates to the housing market. we've got to work with the
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private sector to grow our way out of it. at tax code can be an important vehicle to encourage the type of activity necessary to get to a place. the last thing i would mention being from new york as i think we have to restore the state and local taxes. the fact it was taken away was aimed and weaponize against certain states. never before have i seen a policy weaponize against certain states that may have boded in a different direction and the most recent presidential election. we did not do that with respect to the inflation reduction act. in the claimant forward provisions that encourage public private partnerships. as it relates to standing up to the clean energy economy. in fact what the statistics show is a red states and purple
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states and more of the benefits of the economic activity because we care about all americans. until in my view there would be strong support for complete restoration of the state and local taxes. >> gives the members of your caucus heaven let's call doge curious. who have aligned themselves at least temporarily with the doge effort. said they would be interested in cutting spending. hasha the time come and gone for democrats to participate in any of that given what's going on? >> it's a great question. there are people who may have beeni doge curious early. but after the first date were turned off. [laughter] this is not an effort to rule out waste, fraud, abuse. effort to make
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sure the government is as affectionate and efficient and equitable as possible. we support that effort. this doge thing is about taking a chainsaw to all the things matter as was reaffirmed yesterday. by the leader of the so-called effort who said we are going after social security and medicare. no ambiguity we are going after social security and medicare. which she claims is an entitlement. which tells you they're settingp the chainsaw effort. to be very social security medicare not entitlement programs their earned benefits. earned benefits. they pay in to social security andpe medicare their entire lifi learned that lesson very early. i was 14 and 15 years old and
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manhattan, my first job. i was a messenger going from office to office to office. i was making two year old and 35 cents an hour. i was told that because i was in high school and because i was onlyau going to earn a certain amount i would not be paying taxes on that. so i just did the calculus in $3.35 an hour times about 15 or 20 hours a week. i was going get my first paycheck two weeks in. i had that money calculated and spent. [laughter] calculated and spent. and then i get my first check. i look at it and money has been taken out. contrary to what i was told. i had two questions that i asked. who is fica? and why is he taking my money? and i subsequently learned it is
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because the american people actually pay into socialca security and medicare from the very beginning of your journey in the workforce. these are earned benefits. in seoul this whole doge effort is thought of anything other than dismantling the things that really matter to the american people.e orcs are quickly running out of time. one, give us your read on mike johnson. >> the best thing mike johnson o is going for him right now is the fact that donald trump is his chief a whip at the end of the day. but donald trump says o jump, everyone says how hi. apparently other than massie. now, they are going to have to defend the fact they have set in motion the largest medicaid cuts
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in american history because donald trump demanded that they do it. and children will be devastated. families will be devastated. everyday americans with disabilities will be devastated. older americans in nursing homes will be devastated for nursing homes will be shut down. billy shut down across america. hospitals will close in a rural america, urban america, small-town, america and in the heartland of america that's a vote they now own. it's not that mike johnson told them to do it that bill was dead on the house floor. dead. until donald trump picked up the phone, made calls and demanded they form a line and of course that's exactly what they did it we are going to sty stand on the side of the american people. like johnson said and he'll be here in a little but will ask
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him about this to pretties pretty confident. not only keep the majority of 2026 he will grow the majority in 2026. he said is going to grow the majority in 2024 he did not person it would not control the house of representatives. no doubt about that. in fact have accelerated the pace of our capacity to do it because it been so extreme and now they have conducted themselves and unleashing chaos and they've do nothing about the core issue. youu cannot promise all year 204 you're going to drive down the high cost of living. including on day one. running away from "project 2025" as if it did a not exist. that is what you said to the american people.
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and then, when it is a governing time you do nothing about the high cost of living. not a single bill, not a single administrative action. not a single executive order designed to address the economy. in fact the president comes to the house floor per delivers a joint address to congress, speaks for 140 minutes. less than two on the economy because they have no agenda. in costs are not going down for the going up. inflation is goingot up so it's not only grocery prices did not follow day one, they're actually going up. america is becoming more expensive and part driven by this erotic trump terrorists set of policies. while at the same time every single thing being done including the partisan spending bill on the floors been done in service of "project 2025". i thought you all told me it did not exist or you did not know about it.
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but now you are all in on it. these are broken promises to the american people. and it will have political consequences for them just like they underperform even look trump of the top of the ticket. they would not even been in the majority had they not taken three seats and partisan gerrymandering from north carolina. which they will not have available to them this time around. >> much of the democratic message be? what is your headline? >> basically we are going to continue to fight for the people to make life better for everyday americans. and protect the things that matter like social security, medicare and medicaid. orcs are going to leave it there hakeem jeffries thank you very much. >> thank you. ♪ house speaker mike johnson spoke of t
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